Pirates can't give up on vexing Glasnow; one particular change could help

While covering the Pirates' final series of the 2017 season, in Washington, I made it a point to track down Tyler Glasnow. At 6-foot-8, he's easy to spot anyway, but he remains an intriguing figure for reasons beyond his height.

Although his season was far from what he or the team hoped for, the version of Glasnow who presented himself in three September appearances looked like the Glasnow that Pirates fans were promised in one distinct way.

After returning from a three-month stint with Triple-A Indianapolis, Glasnow pitched in three games, allowing eight runs on six hits and -- ahem -- 15 walks in 7 2/3 innings. One of those appearances was a start, while the other two were relief appearances.

That's, uh, not good. Particularly, the lack of control called to mind the worst days of late-career Steve Blass.

 But, in the face of all that, Glasnow's raw repertoire finally appeared to be that of a legitimate modern pitching prospect. Instead of an average fastball velocity of somewhere between 93-94 mph, as we saw across 12 starts from April to early June, Glasnow's typical fastball in September leapt a shade over 97.

"This is the first year I've failed," Glasnow told me in the visitors' clubhouse at Nationals Park, emphasizing that final 'F' word. "Even while doing bad this season, I solidified some things as far as mechanics and approach go. ... Went down to Triple-A and figured some things out. I still think it could be sharper, but it's better than earlier in the year."

Glasnow's September velocity reminded of why he was held in such high regard by publications like Baseball America and MLB.com for those years. Not only did Glasnow dominate minor-league hitters while zooming through the Pirates' system, he did it with major-league stuff.

In addition to finally getting his fastball humming in September, Glasnow also spun his curveball tighter in the season's final month. Per PITCHf/x data, Glasnow's curve had an additional inch of vertical break after his return from Indy. For a pitcher who's leaned on a fastball-curveball combination to get the job done, this isn't to be ignored, either.

"There's been some sequences here lately that have been lights out, nothing like what we saw earlier in the season," Clint Hurdle said. "We've seen more spin and tilt to the curveball. We've seen fastball velocity play and stick. There are some good things in play. There are some other things in play that we need to work on."

After Glasnow registered a 7.69 ERA and a 6.30 FIP in 2017, that much is obvious. The 24-year-old right-hander is far from being on the level of Jameson Taillon, Trevor Williams and Chad Kuhl, all of whom are just one year older than him.

Tyler Glasnow. - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS

All three of those men project to be starters on the 2018 Pirates, while Glasnow would be accurately classified as a project with no defined role. Glasnow said last month he still unequivocally considers himself a starting pitcher, but given the changing state of the sport, he could have almost as significant an impact out of the bullpen.

Consider this: At no point in the history of Major League Baseball have starters accounted for fewer innings per game than they did in 2017. Over the past three seasons, the average start has dropped from 6.0 innings to 5.5, so relievers are handling nearly half the game these days. It's a trend that doesn't appear to be turning around anytime soon.

Glasnow has appeared in relief five times in 22 appearances with the Pirates, although he noted that his final two games of 2017 weren't quite an identical situation to what he would face as a member of a major-league bullpen with a well-defined role.

"I'm still coming in knowing I'm going to throw multiple innings, so it's not quite full reliever-y," he said. "It's been a good change of pace. Not how I would've planned things but that's the way it's worked out."

Another argument in favor of deploying Glasnow out of the bullpen? Despite his best efforts in 2017, he's still effectively a two-pitch guy. Yes, he increased his usage of his changeup from about 3 percent in 2016 to 12 percent, but opposing batters hit .316 against it with a .684 slugging percentage. That's offensive production akin to peak-level Albert Pujols.

With Glasnow still trying to be consistent with his mechanics and looking for comfort in the majors by any means necessary, perhaps he'll be better served reducing his options to fastball and curveball while working in shorter stints. Who knows, if he completely airs it out, he might approach triple digits with the heater.

And as he told me in Washington, having a couple extra miles per hour on his fastball made a noticeable difference in his confidence level on the mound.

"It took me a while to be comfortable the first few starts, but I had 92, 95 (mph) stuff," Glasnow said. "Gotta have that same level of confidence that you have in Triple-A."

For those who would argue that Glasnow still needs more time in the minors, there appears to be very little the man has to prove in Triple-A. After winning International League Pitcher of the Year in 2016 (1.87 ERA, 1.15 WHIP in 110 2/3 innings), he actually turned it up a notch last season (1.93, 0.95 in 93 1/3) with Indy while increasing his strikeout rate from 10.8 per nine to 13.5 and lowering his walk rate from an abysmal 5.0 per nine to 3.1.

Match that domination up against Glasnow's early-career results with the Pirates and I don't blame you for scratching your head. The jump from Triple-A to the majors is vast, but not that vast.

"I don't have it as a frustrating year on the whole," Hurdle said. "I love what he was able to take when he was sent down. Guys who saw him pitch in '16 and '17 say he's better (this year). That had to be humbling. You're the pitcher of the league (the previous year) and you end up pitching better than the year before.

"We've seen a mixed bag of things. For me, it's part of the journey. The story is still being written."

That all sounds OK in theory, but in practice there is still much uncertainty permeating the Glasnow narrative. There were multiple occasions early in 2017 when Glasnow seemed on the verge of an emotional breakdown in full view of television cameras, but he apparently felt enough like his old self by the end of the season to view his difficulties as constructive.

The Pirates, in urgent need of internal improvements to have any hope of postseason play next year, can only hope that's true.

"I don't think it's anything that someone can tell you," Glasnow said of his big-league struggle. "It's something you just have to feel. Obviously, this was the first year I've had some of those experiences. ... I know how good I am and I know how good I can be. Even as bad as things have gone this year, it doesn't discourage me for next year."